Luigi and the Barefoot Races
Picture Book Read Aloud
book summary
Luigi and the Barefoot Races is a tall tale or urban legend coming from a Philadelphia neighborhood. It tells the story of a young boy, Luigi, who could run faster than all the other children in the neighborhood. No one had ever won a race against Luigi and many believe no one ever will. That is until a boy from another neighborhood shows up and challenges Luigi to a race. The race is closer than any other of Luigi’s races, but Luigi pulls out the win. Instead of congratulating him, the other boy is mad that he didn’t win and dares Luigi to race his best friend the next day (but doesn’t share who his best friend is).
The next day, the boy shows up with his best friend and once Luigi sees him he becomes worried and loses his confidence. Everyone is afraid of Luigi’s newest opponent and he is well known throughout the neighborhood for being mean. Luigi knows that he won’t be able to win the race, but he keeps his word and follows through with the race. Despite all the odds being against him, Luigi is able to win the race.
suggested teaching point
On page 17, point out to students how the author uses suspense to increase the readers’ engagement.
When Luigi saw Mikey’s best friend at the starting line, “his toes trembled in his shoes”. Why do you think Luigi was so scared that he was trembling? Make a prediction. What do you think Mikey’s best friend looks like? Turn to your partner, and share your prediction. Although Luigi is about to race Mean Max, the author and the illustrator have not yet showed us what he looks like. The author is building suspense in his story to increase the reader’s engagement and desire to keep reading to see what will happen next.
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